Shakti Mohan came into the spotlight in 2009 on winning the second season of Dance India Dance. In 2016 she opened her own studio, Nritya Shakti, and started a dance-meets-comedy web series - Break a Leg - on her YouTube channel Nritya Shakti. The second season, produced by Nritya Shakti & ITW Playworx, is already two episodes in since launch on February 15. The show brings together non-dancers to engage in anecdotes, drills and face-off battles as they embrace some complex dance forms they’ve never been exposed to before. The Telegraph caught up with Shakti for a chat.
How is Break A Leg Season 2 going to be different than the first?
In this season, there is conversation and more dancing. In some episodes, our guests are competing with each other and in some they are performing together. The show is all about love, laughter and dance!
Which new guests are lined up to appear this season?
This season has some uber awesome couples - Ayushmann (Khurrana) and Tahira (Kashyap), Bharti (Singh) and Haarsh (Limbachiyaa). We also have Nushrat (Bharucha), Aparshakti (Khurrana), Terence sir (Lewis), Marzi sir (Pestonji), Kapil Sharma, Mukti and Neeti didi (Shakti’s sisters), Harshdeep Kaur, Benny Dayal, Mouni Roy, Maniesh Paul and Elli AvrRam.
With which guest did you have the most fun shooting and why?
It’s difficult to choose one because I’ve had a great time shooting all the episodes. Each episode is different from the other. Bharti and Haarsh were absolutely amazing and fun whereas Ayushmann and Tahira were super romantic with loads of ‘awww’ moments. You’ll see the guests in a completely different light in this second season.
Apparently you made Ayushmann and Tahira dance? What was it like?
Break A Leg is about dance, so they had no option (laughs)! But both of them were such professionals. We’ve seen Ayushmann dance on screen but Tahira is no less. Both of them together are like a house on fire.
Who’s a better dancer between the brothers Ayushmann and Aparshakti?
Both the Khurranas are amazing dancers!
What’s unique about the concept of this show?
This show is about interacting with non-dancers and helping them learn a few steps. I hope this show inspires non-dancers to dance because I believe everybody can dance. The concept is unique because we’ve never had a show like this before where there’s fun, dance and interaction all together.
Who do you think is the best dancer in Bollywood and why?
Madhuri ma’am (Dixit), she is graceful like no one in the world.
Who are your dancing idols?
Terence sir, Hrithik Roshan and Madhuri ma’am.
How do you view your dancing journey so far?
It’s been a beautiful journey. I’ve learnt so much and evolved as an artiste. Never ever thought I will ever be where I am as a dancer. I feel fortunate and grateful to all the people who believed in me.
How do you blend dance and comedy in the show?
I love comedy, I only watch shows and movies which make me laugh. I really wanted to create a concept around dance and comedy which came together very well this year. All thanks to ITW Playworx and the team for giving me so much support for creating this.
